Online media channels have shifted a lot of focus to the power of video and customers are now expecting well produced videos as part of the sales process.
B2C marketing have cottoned on to this trend, but B2B companies don’t seem to take advantage of this marketing tool and therefore do not reap the brand growth that is possible in this space.
Your B2B purchase funnel mostly starts with a Google search and Google has emphatically declared that algorithms give preferential treatment to video content. According to a Google study, 70% of B2B buyers and researchers watch videos along their path to purchase.
Video alone will not save your online marketing, but it will give you a boost in rankings – it allows more people to see your website if your content is of a high quality and answers the search intent of the user.
So, what is this search intent that your B2B video should satisfy? If you can identify the main topics and questions that people are looking to answer when searching for a specific term and your video content addresses the user’s needs, you have come close to nailing the search intent.
A search intent on Google can be categorised into four possibilities:
1. Intent to find information
People are looking to gain knowledge, so the search starts with “how to” or “why”.
2. Intent to find specific business or service
This user knows the company name they are looking for, so a specific website for a specific business is queried.
3. Intent to find more information
People are looking for product information, reviews and price comparisons before they move to the transaction/purchase.
4. Intent to find a transaction in some way or another
People are ready to “buy” a specific product. E.G. “Book travel online” “Buy MacBook”.
B2B companies who proactively use video to answer their prospects top search intent questions, will experience more organic traffic from search engine results pages.
Answering questions about brand, services, products or industry, will educate and empower prospects when they need to make purchasing decisions. If you answer prospects questions consistently, you become an authority in Google’s eyes and gain credibility because of the value you provide.
The B2B versus B2C marketing differentiator is the longer sales cycle, therefore, since the point of purchase is not instantaneous, a single video asset running for 365 days, is not the most viable solution. Opt for a quarterly strategy, mixing brand awareness videos with more relevant sales-converting information.
B2B Video Options
Your business core is to solve challenges for your customers and this is the basis for the list of potential B2B videos to add to your marketing strategy.
- Analyse the challenges you solve.
- Analyse the potential terms the customer will use to search for solutions online.
- Produce video content that helps prospects to learn, compare and research for their B2B purchases.
TedTalk videos cover incredible B2B topics: Google search: “why tedtalk videos work”, serves this answer: “This isn’t traditional business advice. These talks offer unconventional, and uncommonly useful, advice on leading, working and making the most of each day.”
If your B2B video marketing can reach your prospects with useful advice to help them “make the most of each day”, you are on the road to increasing your bottom line.